Sheet-testing device



N0V- 1l 194l J. c. coNwAY SHEET-TESTING' DEVICE' Filed March 23, 1940 Patented Nov. 1.14, 1941 SHEET-TESTMG DEVICE Joseph Christopher Conway, Menasha, Wis., assignor to Maxson Automatic Machinery Company, Westerly, ELI., a corporation of Rhode Island Application March 23, 1940, Serial No. 325,663

6 Claims. (Cl. 33--75)' i The present invention relates to devices for testing paper and similar sheets to determine Whether they have the proper angles at the corners and to check their length and width.

In paper mills, it is customary to cut many of the rolls of paper into sheets. After several sample sheets have first been cut from the roll, it is customary to square one or more of them, in order to determine Whether the angles at the corners are exactly ninety degrees. It is further necessary to check the length and width of the sheet. If the angle or the dimensions turn out to be defective, the cutter or some other part of the machine is adjusted to correspond. A similar problem occurs elsewhere, as in jobbing houses and printing plants.

An object of the invention is to provide a new and improved sheet-testing device, to the end of increasing rapidity and eciency of operation. Other objects will be explained hereinafter and will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The invention will now be explained in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a front elevation 0f a sheet-testing board embodying the invention in preferred form; and Figs. 2 and 3 are opposite end elevations of the same.

A smooth board or other support 2 is secured in vertically disposed position to an angle-iron frame 4. The frame 4 may project out from a wall E, it may be mounted on a pedestal, or it may be otherwise supported. Lugs 5 projecting from the board 2 may be used as further fastening means for securing the board 2 to the wall 6 or other support. At the upper edge of the board 2 there is mounted a horizontally disposed rod or shaft 8, freely rockably mounted in bearings IIJ, and to which are secured a number of horizontally spaced finger-carrying arms II each provided with a threadedly adjustable clamping finger I3, having a rubber or other soft tip I4. The finger tips I3 are caused to press yieldingly against the upper edge of sheet I5 to be tested by a spring I8, fastened at one end to one end of a sprocket chain 26, and at the other end 22 to the frame 4. Upon depressing a treadle 24 to which the other end of the sprocket chain 2S is secured, the chain 26, mounted over a sprocket 28 that is secured to the rod 8, will turn the rod 8 anti-clockwise, as viewed in Fig. 2, to actuate the finger tips I3 out of engagement with the sheet I6. The sheet I6 may then be removed and another substituted with the aid of the hands alone, and upon release of the treadle 24, the sheet. will be held against the board, in

the position in which it is placed by the hands, bythe spring-pressed fingers I3. By suitable threaded adjustment of the fingers I3 and the arms II, the tips I4 thereof may be caused to engage with uniform tension, and to disengage, the sheet IS simultaneously, and in unison, in responsel to the action ofthe spring I8 in one direction and the treadle 24 in the other direction. If it is desired to maintain the ngers I3 released from the board 2, without the aid of the footon the treadle 24, the treadle 24 may be slipped under a projection 29.

A scaleor rule 30, horizontally disposed at the upper edge -of the board 2, graduated in inches and fractions thereof, enables reading the length of the upper edge of the sheet I6 when held in position, alined with the scale 30, by the clamping, lingers I3. To thisend, the upper left-hand corner of the sheet I6 shouldbe made tocoincide with the zero of' thescale 30. The width of the sheet I6 may be readoff with the aid of a vertically disposed scale 3|. A plurality of plusand-minus scales or other indicating elements 32, 34 and 3B, each, as shown, provided with graduations reading to the plus and the Vminus sides of the zero, are disposed along the left-hand margin of the board 2, at different altitudes, with their zeros vertically alined with the zero of the scale 3i), at right angles to the horizontal direction of extension of the scale 30. Whether the upper left-hand corner of the sheet is exactly ninety degrees, or more, or less, can be determined by observing the position of the left-hand edge of the sheet with respect to the zeros of the scales 32, 34 and 36. This operation may, if desired, be repeated for each corner of the sheet. The scales 3|, 32, 34 and 36 may be secured in any desired manner, as by setting them into the board 2.

The length and Width and whether the upper left-hand corner of the sheet I6 is ninety degrees, or more, or less, can thus be determined rapidly, at a mere glance, and simply and accurately, as soon as the treadle 24 has been let go and the sheet is allowed to hang, held in place by the fingers I3. The time required to perform these measurements is very short, and causes of error are entirely eliminated.

No particular problem is involved in testing the length, the width and the squareness of small sheets. The diiiiculty arises with long and Wide sheets. The scales 30 and 3| are shown as of corresponding considerable extent: the scale 30 is shown as 58 inches long and the scale 3| as 71 inches long.

Modications will occur to persons skilled in the art and all such are considered to fall Within the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A sheet-testing device comprising a support, a plurality of fingers for holding a sheet to the support, means for holding the fingers yieldingly in engagement with the sheet on the support, and means for actuating the fingers as a unit out of engagement with the support in opposition to the yielding holding means, the fingers being inclinedly adjustable to regulate the pressure with which the fingers hold the sheet against the support.

2. A sheet-testing device comprising a support, a rockably mounted rod, a plurality of ngers secured to the rod for holding a sheet to the support, means for yieldingly holding the rod in position such as to cause the iingers to hold the sheet yieldingly to the support, and means for rocking the rod in opposition to the yielding holding means to actuate the lingers out of engagement With the sheet on the support.

3. A sheet-testing device comprising a support, a rockably mounted rod provided with a sprocket, a sprocket chain mounted over the sprocket, a plurality of ngers secured to the rod, a spring secured to one end of the chain for yieldingly holding the rod in position such as to cause the fingers to hold the sheet yieldingly to the support, and a treadle connected to the other end of the chain for rocking the rod in opposition to the action of the spring to actuate the iingers out of engagement with the sheet on the support.

4. A sheet-testing device comprising a support, means adapted to occupy two positions in one of which it is effective to hold a sheet to the support and in the other of which it is ineiective, a

sprocket, a sprocket chain mounted over the sprocket, means secured to one end of the chain for yieldingly holding the rst-named means in the eiective position, and means connected to the other end of the chain for actuating the rstnamed means in opposition to the action of the yielding holding means to the ineffective position.

5. A sheet-testing device comprising an approximately vertically disposed support, approximately horizontally disposed alining means of considerable extent for alining the upper edge of a long and Wide sheet and provided with a scale for measuring the said upper edge of the sheet, a treadle, means actuated by the treadle for receiving the said upper edge of the sheet While the operator manipulates the treadle with one foot, means whereby the treadle-actuated means Will hold the sheet vertically with the said upper edge of the sheet alined with the said alining means, the support being free of obstructions across it in order that the sheet may hang vertically freely without restraint While held by the treadle-actuated means, means disposed approximately vertically at right angles to the alining means for cooperating with the alining means to test the squareness of one of the upper corners of the sheet when the sheet hangs vertically, and an approximately vertically disposed scale of considerable extent for measuring the dimension of the sheet at right angles to the said upper edge of the sheet, whereby the length and the Width of the sheet and the squareness of the said corner of the sheet may be determined at a glance.

6. A sheet-testing device as defined in claim 5 in which the means disposed approximately vertically vfor cooperating with the alining means to test the squareness of one of the upper corners of the sheet comprises one or more plus-and-minus indicating elements.

JOS. C. CONWAY. 

